Category: alto adige

I drink oceans of white wine year-round but there are some grapes that just don’t get into heavy or even light rotation. One of them is definitely Gewürz. Badly/indifferently done, it can be oily, flabby, and overly perfume-y. But, whoa, the Tiefenbrunner Gewürztraminer from Italy’s spectacular Alto Adige region is a stunner. (It was sent to me as a sample, BTW.)

Now isn’t that a place you want to visit? Beautiful vineyards with a backdrop of the dramatic Dolomites? Yeah, I thought so. The Alto Adige is a treasure for aromatic white wines like Gewürz. Don’t sleep on the reds, either. Though best-known for whites, Alto Adige makes very cool reds. Check out wines made from two indigenous grapes, Lagrein and Schiava.

Tiefenbrunner Gewürztraminer 2016 (Südtirol-Alto Adige)

This is definitely not a shy white wine. Golden color and 14% alcohol. But not overblown at all. It just plain smells and tastes great, with a kind of ginger-y fresh finish that wipes away the medium heft of the wine. Really a joy to drink and a nice change-of-pace from light, watery, bland-yet-refreshing summer whites.

Pair it with a meat and cheese plate, sitting outdoors, somewhere in the shade, accompanied by a light breeze.

I’d also like to mention that Tiefenbrunner makes one of my all-time favorite white wines: Feldmarschall. It’s Müller-Thurgau from a single vineyard that sits up at almost 3,300 feet.

Another cool grape you’ll find in Alto Adige is Kerner. Highly recommend seeking it out as well.

Do you have a grape that you weren’t wild about until you found a bottle from a certain producer and/or region? LMK.